Pieces
by lightning in my tea
Summary: Pieces of a heart can be put back together.


**A/N: **this just came to me last night and I have NO idea why. It just seemed nice.  
Warning! there is infidelity in this story and it's only a one-shot. it's my first Nick/Greg piece but I think it's nice. :)

**please review! they keep me going.

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**_Pieces_

"This is so stupid, Greg." Nick sighed, unable to even fake interest in something he found to be...so stupid.

"It's not," Greg whined, "it's not, the counselor said we needed to do something together..." Greg trailed off, happily absorbed in his work.

"Yeah, but pottery? I've never made pottery a day in my life..." Nick sighed again and rolled his eyes, "and that's another stupid thing...we don't need some stranger telling us how to fix out problems. I told you I'm...over it, can't that just be that?"

"It could, if you were actually over it..." Greg said, still kneading his soon to be creation, "plus, this is fun, haven't you ever done this?"

"No...why would I?" Nick said, leaning back and not even pretending to work the clay through his hands like Greg was.

"Because it's relaxing and it's fun and something we can do toge-"

"It's stupid," Nick cut off Greg and spoke in a monotonous tone.

"Nick, why can't you just do this? I'm trying to fix us here, I'm trying to make this up to you." Greg looked to Nick.

"You think that making some pottery and making me spend my only day off for, like, the next 6 weeks in this place is going to make everything better, Greg?" Nick's voice was laced with ice and hurt, even though he wouldn't admit it. Nick wasn't the kind of man to talk about his feelings. It took him nearly 6 years to admit to Greg his feelings in the first place, another year to tell him that he was in love with him, and 8 months after that to take the next step and move in together. And then...

_"I think we need to talk, Nick..." Greg said to him, his heart breaking, his hands shaking, his voice trembling._

_"Um, okay..." Nick said, clearly nervous._

_"I have something to tell you and I want you to promise me that you won't...um, do anything scary..." Greg said, unsure of how to say what he needed to say._

_Nick chuckled, "Do anything scary? okay, I promise...nothing scary. What do you need to tell me?"_

_"..." Greg opened his mouth to start but found that nothing came from his mouth, but that tears ran freely from his eyes as he threw his arms around his boyfriend and let his tears form a river on the bigger man's shirt._

_"Baby, what's wrong? What happened?" Nick said rubbing his younger lover's back in an effort to try and comfort him._

_"I'm so sorry, Nick." Greg repeated over and over and continued crying._

_"What happened, Greg?" Nick kept his hold on his partner, almost afraid to let him go._

_"...I-it...I don't know why I did it, Nicky. I love you so much and it hurts so bad. I'm so sorry." Greg could barely get through this._

_"Tell me what happened." Nick said in a cold and flat voice, because he already knew what was coming. He hoped that he was wrong, with his entire heart, he hoped that he was wrong..._

_"I cheated on you..." But he wasn't._

_Greg could swear that he felt Nick's breathing stop for a minute. His hands stopped their movements on Greg's back and they fell to the side. Greg released his grip on Nick's waist and without words, Nick put a hand to Greg's cheek and slowly caressed the side of face and let his fingers grip some of Greg's sandy blonde hair. A single tear fell from his eye. He turned around and walked towards their shared bedroom and closed the door. Greg knew that Nick wouldn't appreciate him sleeping beside him tonight and he couldn't blame him._

_3 hours into the most sleepless and uncomfortable night on the couch of Greg's life, he heard Nick emerge from the bedroom and open and close the door to the bathroom. He did not move, electing instead to not let Nick know that he was awake and listening to his movements. What he heard next, he wouldn't ever forget._

_A choked sob, heavy breathing, cries of an unmistakable broken heart. Greg felt his heart breaking in his chest and he didn't know what to do. Get up and comfort Nick? Or let him be alone in his Greg inflicted heartache? Greg hated himself, he'd never been more disappointed in himself for a decision he'd made. And he would never forget the sound of Nick crying in the bathroom at 2 in the morning and he would never forget the almost physical pain of his heart ripping in half._

"I just...I just want to make things better." Greg said to Nick, "I miss you so much Nicky," This time turning to him from his kneading.

Nick was silent, with sympathetic eyes. He didn't make Greg move out after he told him. He didn't act hateful or anything towards Greg, either. But something was wrong, the fire in his eyes was gone. The warmth he had was gone too. Greg realized that he had broken Nick's spirit, that he had damaged his soul, and shattered his heart.

"Greg...I..." Nick didn't know what to say when he saw the truth, the pain in his younger lover's eyes that showed him that he truly was sorry for his actions.

"I'm sorry, Nick." Greg said, defeated.

"I know..." Nick said, "I just...I don't know what I did. I've been trying to figure it out. What I did wrong, why I wasn't...enough for you." Nick nearly whispered the last part, every word laced with pain and heartache.

"Oh Nicky, that's not the reason. You're everything to me, you are the most beautiful man I've ever known. The smartest, the kindest, the most understanding person, Nicky. I love you so much." Greg couldn't help the words that came from his mouth.

"...Then why?" Nick questioned, his voice barely audible.

"I don't know, Nick. I don't know. I was drunk and I was...I was mad and I didn't know what I was doing. God, you'll never know how much I hate myself for what I did to you." Greg was trying his hardest to hold back his tears by concentrating on his work and on the words he so desperately needed to say to Nick.

"I love you, Greg." Nick said and it made Greg nearly jump out of his skin. Nick hadn't said those words in nearly 5 months, when he first learned of Greg's infidelity.

"I love you too, Nicky. I love you more than anything." Greg said, looking in Nick's eyes.

"This is very nice," an unfamiliar voice said to Greg, breaking his stare into Nick's eyes.

"Excuse me?" Greg asked, unsure of what she was speaking about, for he'd forgotten what his hands were doing.

"I'm the owner of the shop," the woman explained, "and this is a very nice piece." She smiled.

"Oh," Greg realized, "thank you."

"It's something I rarely see, because so many people have lost it." She explained.

"Lost what?" Nick inquired.

"Well...love, of course. The only true emotion that creates art...is love." She smiled and walked away to speak to other customers.

And both Nick and Greg looked at the creation that Greg had been unknowingly creating while the conversation among the two had been going on. The piece truly was a perfectly proportionate vase with smooth, round edges. Nick and Greg looked at one another and Nick leaned over to kiss Greg sweetly and softly on the lips, like he hadn't done in so long. His warmth was back, his eyes were shining again. And Greg was happy, happy to have him back. And he wouldn't lose him again.

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**Yes, lame and sappy but I like lame and sappy. :)  
please review.**


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